On Sunday (1st June) afternoon, the dead body of a 70-year-old Hindu man named Budhimanta Sarkar, stuffed inside a rice sack, was recovered from a canal. The incident occurred in Kotalipara Upazila in Gopalganj district of Bangladesh.
According to reports, the victim worked as a sevadar at ‘Sadachar Sevashram & Mandir’ for the past 5-6 years. Budhimanta was the son of Kutiswar Sarkar.
The victim had been missing for 3 days, prior to the discovery of his dead body. A previous search operation had failed to trace him.
As per his neighbour Mrinmoy Sarkar, Budhimanta stayed at the ‘Sadachar Sevashram & Mandir’ each night. The victim’s body was found in a mutilated state, with his legs chopped off.
In a statement, Kotalipara Police Station OC Mohammed Abul Kalam Azad informed that the victim’s body was sent to the Gopalganj General Hospital for post-mortem.
The OC added that in all likelihood, the elderly Hindu man was first murdered and then his body was dumped in the canal. An investigation has been initiated into the matter.
The incident comes amid rising mob attacks on Hindus and systematic persecution of religious minorities in Bangladesh.
